Suction cleaner



B. C. BECKER suTIoN CLEANER Filed April 17, 193

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Dace X ATTORNEY bearch R00 g- 1941- B. c. BECKER SUCTION CLEANER Filed April 17, 1939 3 SheetsSheet 3 INVENTOR dk 5 m3. 0 Ma m@ a m 05 Be w B m ATTORNEY & GENERAL CLEANING,

@ANCELED Patented Aug. 26, 1941 search Room UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE by Bernice Becker, executrix, York, Pa., assignor to The Hoover Company, North Canton, Ohio, a corporation oi Ohio Application April 17, 1939, Serial No. 268,183

2 Claims.

This invention relates to improvements in suction cleaners and more particularly to a suction cleaner of the portable handle-maneuvered type consisting of a suction-creating unit mounted upon a wheeled frame or chassis and having a handle that swings forwardly and rearwardly in a vertical plane.

The characteristic feature of the suction cleaner herein disclosed is the mounting of a suction-creating unit, consisting of a motor, fan, and fan chamber, within a cylindric housing arranged transversely of the main frame or chassis of the cleaner for rotation about a horizontal axis by means of the handle mounted thereon.

In addition to these parts already referred to, the cleaner includes the usual nozzle extending across the front end thereof, and within the nozzle chamber is mounted a rotating agitator having carpet contacting heater and brush elements. Also, the cleaner is provided with a headlight serving to illuminate the floor surface immediately in front of the nozzle, the lighting unit, consisting of an electric lamp and a reflector, being entirely concealed within a housing having an aperture or window opening immediately in front of the lighting unit.

One of the objects of the invention is to provide a cleaner design of reduced height, so that the cleaner can be readily maneuvered beneath beds and other articles of furniture which otherwise would have to be moved bodily in order to clean thoroughly beneath.

Another object of the invention is to construct a suction cleaner so that the moving and other essential parts are normally included within a casing but at the same time are readily accessible for repairs, cleaning, or service by the use of a single removable casing section extending over the forward portion of the cleaner body to complete the nozzle chamber, the headlight housing and the top wall sections of the air inlet passage to the fan cLamber and the housing for the agitator drive from the motor to the agitator. In other words, the body of the cleaner is divided or parted along a substantially horizontal plane, with the upper section removable so that all parts that may require attention are readily accessible from above and without having to turn the cleaner over. In fact, in the present arrangement the underside of the cleaner body is entirely encased or enclosed, except for the downwardly opening suction mouth.

Having set forth the novel features of the innow follow, with frequent reference to the drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a general view in side elevation showing the handle in lowered position and a section of the casing broken away immediately forward of the motor and fan unit;

Figure 2 is a view similar to Figure 1, but with the detachable top section of the main casing tilted upwardly and forwardly as it would appear in the act of removing it;

Figure 3 is a top plan view of the cleaner body with sections of the casing removed to show the arrangement of the parts beneath;

Figure 4 is a view in side elevation taken from the opposite side of the cleaner and with a portion shown in vertical section as taken on line 4-4 of Figure 3;

Figure 5 is a view in vertical section taken through the forward portion of the cleaner body as on line 5-5 of Figure 4; and

Figure 6 is a perspective view of the removable top section of the casing as viewed from beneath. First, to identify the essential parts of the cleaner, a wheeled frame I carries the suctioncreating unit having the form of a cylindric housframe or supporting chassis l and the removable top casing section 4, the latter including the nozzle 3.

The wheeled frame or chassis I consists of a pair of side frame members I a, la spaced apart transversely to define the space occupied by the suction-creating unit 2, which has the form of a cylindric housing journalled at either end in trunnion bearings 5, 5 of the divided or split type, the upper halves 5a of the bearing being bolted to the lower halves 51) formed integral with the side frame members of the main frame I As clearly shown in Figures 3 and 4, the cylindric housing 2 supports a motor 6 at one end, the remaining portion being sealed off to form a fan chamber in which is located the fan I having direct driving connection with the motor. Extending radially from the housing 2 is the discharge passage 8 leading from the fan chamber and terminating in a flanged outlet connection 5 8a to which a dirt bag 9 is removably attached.

Formed integral with the housing 2 just above the outlet or discharge passage 8 is a socket [0 for the handle H extending somewhat tangentially with respect to the cylindric housing 2 but vention generally, a more detailed discussion will 55 generally parallel with the discharge passag 8 with the dirt bag 9 located Just beneath and, as is the usual practice but not shown, the upper end of the dirt bag is suspended from the handle;

The trunnions 5, supporting the cylindrichousing 2 may be of any suitable construction, but preferably of a two-part design so that the housing may be dropped into place. Annular bearing flanges l2, l2 project outwardly from the end walls of the housing 2 and surround corresponding annular flanges I311, I341 of smaller diameter defining a central opening in each of a pair of bearing plates l3, 13 which are fastened by means of screws l3b over the outer faces of the bearing members after the housing 2 has been assembled. (Figure 2.)

At each end of the cylindric housing 2 is a short passage formed by the flanged openings in the bearing plates l3, I3 and registering with annular openings in the end walls of the housing itself. As viewed in Figure 3, the opening at what appears to be the upper end of the housing 2 provides for the outward extension of the motor armature shaft carrying a. pulley l4 for the agitator drive belt l5 extending forwardly through a duct or passageway extending along one side of the cleaner body opening into the nozzle chamber. A similar passage formed on the other side of the housing 2 provides a passageway for the air delivered from the nozzle chamber into the fan chamber through the inlet opening or passage IS in what appears to be the lower end wall of the housing 2,

The agitator l1 located in the nozzle chamber,

consists of a cylindric metal shell having a suitable arrangement of carpet contacting beater and brush elements on its outer surface. The agitator shell is journalled on a shaft Ila supported at each end in a skeleton frame member l8 integral with the main frame or chassis l and, projecting forwardly from its lower front edge, serves to define the front, rear, and end lips of the nozzle suction mouth. To permit the agitator to be removed bodily from the cleaner, the ends of its shaft 11a are fitted into upwardly opening slots |8a cut in the end sections of the frame I8 and held in place by suitable retaining springs l9. Thus it will be seen that the agitator is carried by the wheeled frame I and has permanent driving connection with the motor.

Now, immediately in front of the cylindric housing 2 and mounted upon the wheeled frame I is a vertical bracket 20 supporting at its upper end a lamp socket 2| having suitable connection with the source of electric current to the motor. A reflector 22, also supported on the bracket 20, curves around the top, rear, and underside of a lamp 23 mounted in the lamp socket. The forward edges of the reflector 22 define a substantially vertical and slightly convex plane and register with the margins of an aperture or window 24 formed in a separate housing in the removable casing section 4, as will presently be described, although when the latter is removed, the lamp assembly remains intact on the main frame I, as shown in Figure 2.

Referring now to the removable top section 4 of the cleaner casing, Figure 6 offers a clear showing of its general conformation as well as its several portions. The main body or nozzle portion 3 completes the nozzle chamber with its lower edges fitting closely around the agitator supporting frame l8 and its outer lower edges bounded by a protective bumper strip 25.

Now, extending rearwardly from the main nozzle portion 3 of the casing section 4 is a pair of complementary extensions consisting of semicircular top wall segments 26, 26 and annular end wall segments 21, 21 provided with annular openings 21a concentric with the top wallsegmerits, these openings being adapted to be closed normally by detachable cover plates 28, 28. These extensions straddle the housing 2 and with their edges abutting complementary edges of the frame I, form the passageways or ducts leading from the nozzle chamber to the opposite ends of the rotative housing 2, one of which is the air inlet passage 29 to the fan chamber and the gghter the housing 30 for the agitator driving And finally, between the two spaced extensions of the casing section 4, there is an approximately half-round wall segment 4a which provides the housing for the headlight fixtures just in front of the cylindric housing 2, with its rearmost edge terminating in close proximity to the surface of the housing, as shown in Figure 1. This housing snugly encloses the lamp fixture with the opening 24 in its front wall framing the reflector 22.

As previously stated, the parting lines or planes separating the removable section 4 and the main frame are horizontal for the most pant, although they are not in the same plane. Moreover, these parting lines are shown in the drawings by double lines in elevation and by short zig-zag lines in cross section, it being preferable that the edges of the meeting vertical wall sections contact through the medium of offset and overlapping shoulders serving to hold the sections together against lateral displacement.

Thus starting with the foremost lower edge of the removable casing section, it will be observed that the front edge of the projecting frame I8 carrying the agitator is slightly undercut, that is to say, slopes rearwardly from its uppermost edge and that along the complementary corresponding inner edge of the nozzle section 3 is a projecting bead 3| adapted to contact a, cushion strip 32 applied along the beveled front edge of the frame 18. Thus, assuming that the casing section 4 has been removed and is about to be replaced, the first step is to hook the beaded edge of the nozzle easing 3 beneath the front edge of the frame l8 and after it is properly centered laterally, then allow it to swing backwardly into its final poslton. And, when seated in position, the casing section 4 has edge to edge contact with the main frame I along shouldered edges identified by letters as follows: First, the lower edges (a) of the outer side wall segments 21, 21 contact corresponding edges (a) extending rearwardly in line with the top edge of the agitator frame to a point immediately below the central axis of the cylindric housing (Figure 2), thus following an arc concentric to said axis through an angle of approximately to the points narking the parting lines of the trunnions 5, 5, and thence inwardly at right angles to the end faces of the housing 2. In this way, the air inlet passage 29 from the nozzle and the housing 30 for the agitator drive belt on opposite sides of the rotative housing 2 are completely enclosed, as is also the nozzle chamber, it being noted from Figure 6 that the vertical wall segments 21, 21 extend at right angles at their forward ends to form vertical transverse webs 21b, 212; which meet the end walls of the nozzle casing 3 and thereby form the rear walls of the nozzle chamber throughout its projecting end portions.

& GENERAL CLEAlllllj Search R!" @ANCELED Similarly, abutting contact takes place between the lower edges (b) of the vertical webs extending ar ound the three sides of the headlight housing-iii and the main frame I along U-shaped parting line (b) spaced above the first mentioned parting line (a) and extending forwardly from the trunnion bearings 5, 5, and thence across the front of the main frame just below the bottom edge of the reflector 22, as shown in Figure 2.

And finally, to secure the section 4 in place after it has been lowered intoseating contact along the several parting lines hereinabove defined, a pair of spring latch members 33 are mounted along the rearmost transverse edges of the semi-circular segments 26, 26, these latch members being formed of strips of spring metal with apertured ends adapted to engage projecting pins 34 carried by the main frame member I. As arranged, these latch members catch automatically as the section 4 is lowered into position and, to release them, it is only necessary to lift their free ends.

Thus, it will be seen that by designing the cleaner in accordance with the foregoing disclosure, namely, by providing a single removable top casing section, it is possible to obtain access to all of the parts from above and yet at no point does it project above the cylindric housing 2 which marks the maximum height of the cleaner body. In other words, the advantages of low over-all height with convenience of assembly have been achieved by the novel design herein disclosed.

Having set forth a preferred embodiment of the invention, what is claimed is:

1. In a suction cleaner, the combination of a carriage supporting a cylindrical casing enclosing amotor-driven suction-creating unit and having an open frame defining the marginal lips of a forwardly disposed nozzle, a rotary floor contacting member extending lengthwise of said open frame and journaled at its ends in bearings ac cessible from the upper side thereof, a lamp supporting bracket mounted on said frame forwardly of said casing, and a removable cover section seating upon said carriage along horizontal planes of contact and including a portion fitting over and around said open frame to complete the nozzle chamber and a portion fitting over said lamp bracket to provide a housing having a vertically arranged front wall with a light-emitting opening therein.

2. A suction cleaner comprising an ambulatory body having a lower portion supported on wheels for moving said body over the surface to be cleaned, means in said lower body portion defining part of anozzle and part of the walls of spaced passageways extending rearwardly from said nozzle portion, a fan chamber rotatably mounted in said lower body portion and communicating with one of said spaced passageway portions, a motor for operating a fan in said fan chamber and communicating with the other of said spaced passageways, a removable upper body portion seated on said lower body portion to complete said nozzle and spaced passageways, a surface contacting member rotatably mounted in said nozzle, and a belt in one of said passageways connecting said motor with said surface contacting member, the other passageway connecting said nozzle with said rotatable fan chamber for removing dirt from the surface being cleaned, one wall of said upper body portion covering the entrance to the rotatable fan chamber, another wall of said upper body portion covering the belt connection with said motor.

BERNICE BECKER, Erecutrix of the Estate of Bernard 0. Becker,

Deceased. 

